Somerset County man accused of lying about Stafford vacation home to get Sandy money

Apr. 9, 2014

Scott Carlin / COURTESY NJ ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE

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@Loder1

TRENTON — A Somerset County man who claimed his primary residence was in Stafford and received more than $17,000 in federal money was charged Monday with filing a false application for superstorm Sandy relief funds, according to a prepared statement by the state acting attorney general.

Scott Carlin, 48, of Bernards, was charged with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification. Carlin falsely claimed that a storm-damaged house on Mary Alice Road in the Manahawkin section of Stafford was his primary residence, when in fact it was a vacation home, according to acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman

Carlin received a total of $17,766 in FEMA rental assistance grants. In addition, investigators say he filed a false application for a $10,000 grant under the federal HUD Homeowner Resettlement Program. He was approved for that grant, but the funds were not issued because investigators said they discovered the fraud.

Third-degree charges carry a sentence of up to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $15,000; fourth-degree charges carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.